Meeting Notes 18th May 2009

Notes on meeting held on Monday 18th May 2009. There was a good turnout of nine members.

The visit of the “Shed” on Sat 18th April was not well attended as it was such a cold day, but we are grateful for the community support team for bringing all the equipment, and giving information and advice to all those that stopped for a chat.

It has been suggested that at some future date a similar event could be held in conjunction with Lawrence’s Auction House in Crewkerne, where for a fee people could get their treasures valued, and be given advice about keeping photographic records of valuables, and how to mark them to aid recovery if objects are stolen. Something to consider for another year.

Since then there have been a few incidents that have raised concern.
Sky TV have been calling at every house in a marketing drive, at the end of April. Some residents in Buttle Close have felt intimidated by the Sales technique.

A call to the police non-emergency line produced the response of a promise to leave a message, and Sky told us we would be on hold for 20 minutes if we wished to complain. Neither response was satisfactory.

At the same time callers from the Red Cross asked someone to supply their bank details. This is not usual, and if they were genuine, should not take place. Fortunately, no one was conned on these occasions.

Last week there was and incident of attempted “distraction burglary”, but the householder did not allow access to the upper floors of the house. Council officials alerted the Police, and there was a large Police presence rapidly. As far as we are aware there was no property stolen.

Yet again we all need to remember to take care whom we let into our home, always check ID carefully, and ring to confirm the caller is genuine. If in doubt, do not let anyone in to your house. A genuine person will make arrangements to call again at a suitable time.

Unfortunately the Church Roof was stripped of lead over the boiler room, and considerable damage was done. We all need to report unusual activity if we notice anything suspicious.

There have been problems with rowdiness in North Street, when people leaving the pub have been noisy, placed potted plants on car roofs, placed cones on car roofs etc. Though these incidents are not serious crimes, they lead to disturbance and distress in local residents, and this has a cumulative effect. Complaints to the police have not produced any response, and this leads to a negative attitude to reporting incidents. We would like to see a police presence in the village sometimes, and at times when these incidents occur. Mary to write to Inspector Andy Pritchard to express our concerns.

The problems of dog fouling do not seem to have lessened, We need to remind people of their obligations to pick up after their dogs, and hope this will raise awareness.